10 Best St Louis Suburbs 2024

St. Louis is a city with a rich history and culture, making it a great place to live.

Known for its iconic Gateway Arch, Saint Louis is often referred to as the Gateway to the West.

Despite being a relatively big city, St Louis has a very reasonable cost of living.

According to Zillow, the average home value in St. Louis is $242,200. This is much more affordable than the national average of $316,368.

One of Saint Louis’s defining features is its top-tier entertainment. Even though it’s known for its blues scene, St. Louis has a vibe for everyone.

But which suburbs around St Louis, Missouri are the best? Keep on reading to find out.

Also, feel free to check out our map of the best St. Louis suburbs so you can see where they are located.

Although these might be the best Saint Louis, MO neighborhoods, the cost of living is still much lower than in other major cities.

Accordingly, the cost of a house in St. Louis is still much less than the Chicago, New York, or even Detroit metros.

Top Saint Louis Suburbs Criteria

Just because a suburb is wealthy does not mean it is unaffordable or overpriced.

‍When compared to the average in the US, St. Louis is a great value. This is especially true when you compare the cost of living index of Saint Louis with other metropolitan areas across the nation.

In this list of the best suburbs in STL, we skewed towards larger-sized cities.

All things being equal, we didn’t have a hard population cutoff but we did favor bigger suburbs. Nonetheless, we’ve included a few smaller neighborhoods in our honorable mentions list.

Likewise, we looked at suburbs on the Illinois side.

However, most of the best neighborhoods fell on the Missouri side of the border.

When ranking these suburbs, we looked at each town’s location, school districts, and various economic indicators, such as median home value.

Just a heads up, this statistic includes prices for condos, not just single-family houses.

Without further ado, here’s our list of the best Saint Louis suburbs of the year.

1. Ladue, MO

Ladue, MO is an inner-ring suburb of Saint Louis. It is located directly west of Clayton.

Given that Ladue has the highest median income of any city in St Louis County, it’s no surprise that they take the #1 spot on our list.

Key Stats For Ladue, Missouri:

• Ladue’s Population: 8,601
• Median Annual Property Tax: $11,479
• Household Income (median): $214,875
• Median Home Value: $831,800

Indeed, Ladue has played an important role in the evolution of free speech in the US.

More specifically, the city had a ban on most signage, including political signs. In response, a local resident, Margaret Gilleo, sued the city with the backing of the ACLU in City of Ladue v. Gilleo.

The case made its way to the Supreme Court, which found the ban to be in violation of the first amendment.

As a result, political yard signs are now considered protected free speech in the United States.

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2. Town and Country, MO

Town and Country, Missouri is located west of St. Louis between Chesterfield and Creve Coeur. It has the highest median household income for any city in Missouri with a population of over 10,000. So, it is well-deserving of the number 2 spot on our list.

About Town and Country, Missouri:

• Town and Country, MO Population: 11,077
• Median Annual Property Tax: $10,140
• Household Income (median): $192,983
• Median Home Value: $734,800

Additionally, Town and Country is home to the Bellerive Country Club. In 1965, Bellerive hosted the US Open and was the youngest course to have held the event.

Moreover, Bellerive hosted both the 1992 and 2018 PGA championships.

3. Clayton, MO

Clayton, MO can be found right on the west border of St. Louis. It is just west of Forest Park, which is home to the St. Louis Zoo.

Of the three best suburbs listed, Clayton offers the best access to downtown St. Louis.

More Clayton, MO Information:

• Clayton, Missouri Population: 16,588
• Median Annual Property Tax: $8,741
• Household Income (median): $107,596
• Median Home Value: $633,400

Another key fact is that Clayton is home to the office buildings of St. Louis County.

Similar to Ladue and Town & Country, Clayton has a higher median home price.

As you will see, all the other suburbs have median incomes of around $100,000.

Having said that, no other city comes close to these three in terms of home values and buyer demand.

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4. Wildwood, Missouri

Located on the far west side of St Louis County, you’ll find Wildwood, MO.

A nature-lovers dream, it’s situated just south of Chesterfield. One of the best parts of living in the suburbs of St Louis is how little traffic there is compared to most major metros.

Accordingly, Wildwood is only an approximate 40-minute drive via I-64 from downtown STL.

Additional Wildwood, MO Data:

• Population: 35,459
• Median Annual Property Tax: $5,216
• Household Income (median): $135,202
• Median Home Value: $378,000

As you can imagine, Wildwood is the best St. Louis suburb for those who like easy access to nature. Furthermore, it has hiking trails in nature preserves such as the Rockwoods Range.

Last but not least, nature enthusiasts should visit Babler State Park and the Rockwoods Reservation.

5. Chesterfield, MO

Chesterfield, MO is a western St. Louis County city. It is located just to the northeast of Wildwood, 22 miles west of downtown Saint Louis, Missouri.

Top Stats For Chesterfield:

• Chesterfield, Missouri Population: 47,605
• Median Annual Property Tax: $5,241
• Household Income (median): $113,315
• Median Home Value: $379,800

Also, Chesterfield is home to the Butterfly House. The Butterfly House is located in Faust Park.

Indeed, visitors can meet over 60 species of butterflies and is one of the many family-friendly attractions in the Chesterfield area.

6. Sunset Hills, Missouri

Sunset Hills, MO is located on the southern side of St. Louis County. It is just south of Kirkwood, MO. If this list was ranking cities by name, Sunset Hills would’ve taken the top spot.

More About Sunset Hills:

• Sunset Hills, MO Population: 8,472
• Median Annual Property Tax: $5,412
• Household Income (median): $106,094
• Median Home Value: $392,200

Fun fact, Sunset Hills is the headquarters of Panera. Panera’s headquarters are located right by the famous Laumeier Sculpture Park. The park has an astounding 4.7-star average rating with well over 2,000 reviews.

7. Creve Coeur, MO

Creve Coeur, MO can be found just north of Town and Country. As a result, this popular second-ring suburb is only a 20-minute drive from the city of Saint Louis.

City Stats For Creve Coeur:

• Town Population: 18,538
• Median Annual Property Tax: $5,552
• Household Income (median): $96,319
• Median Home Value: $402,300

Lake Park, which is confusingly in nearby Maryland Heights, is one of the top attractions in the area.

Actually, Creve Coeur Lake Park is one of the largest natural lakes in all of Missouri. Not surprisingly, the park has plenty of things to do. Including canoes and kayaks for rent, beaches, a soccer complex, and more.

No question, Creve Coeur is one of the best places to live in the greater St Louis area.

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8. Eureka, MO

Eureka, MO is one of the farthest southwest suburbs of St. Louis. This quaint town is located due south of Wildwood just over 27 miles from the city.

Key Insights Eureka, MO:

• Population: 10,666
• Median Annual Property Tax: $3,834
• Household Income (median): $111,058
• Median Home Value: $277,800

Perfect for those with families, Eureka is home to Six Flags St. Louis.

Residents should be aware, however, that the city’s proximity to the Meramec River makes it prone to flooding. Eureka experience two catastrophic floods recently. One was in 2015 and the other was in 2017.

9. Kirkwood, Missouri

Kirkwood, MO is another inner-ring suburb of St. Louis.

This popular suburb is located just north of Sunset Hills. Approximately 15 minutes away from St Louis, Kirkwood is a fabulous suburb for young families.

Another fun fact, it was actually the first planned suburb west of the Mississippi River.

Data For Kirkwood, Missouri:

• Kirkwood, MO Population: 27,708
• Median Annual Property Tax: $4,347
• Household Income (median): $90,730
• Median Home Value: $315,000

Each year, Kirkwood, Missouri holds the Greentree Festival.

This community event has a lot going on. It has a parade, pickleball, a folklife festival, and even the cutest baby contest. Further reinforcing Kirkwood’s reputation as one of the best St Louis suburbs for new families.

Did you know?

The suburb of Kirkwood was founded in 1853. It was named after James P. Kirkwood, the builder of the Pacific Railroad that runs through the city.

As you can imagine, there is plenty of historic charm in the neighborhood filled with classic Victorian homes.

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10. Ballwin, MO

Ballwin, MO is a suburb southwest of Saint Louis. About a 28-minute drive east to downtown, it’s located between Wildwood and Town and Country, Missouri.

All About Ballwin, MO:

• Ballwin, Missouri Population: 30,252
• Median Annual Property Tax: $3,614
• Household Income (median): $98,750
• Median Home Value: $261,900

Located along Ballwin’s southern border is Castlewood State Park. This 1,800-acre state park has some of the best mountain biking trails in the St. Louis area.

Undeniably, it has fantastic hiking trails, fishing spots, and other recreational facilities.

Nearby Suburbs Honorable Mentions

Webster Groves, Missouri is another suburb worth taking a look at. Minutes from downtown, it has a number of great niche boutiques and shopping options.

The city of Manchester, MO is one of the more affordable but still nice suburbs of St. Louis. Its economic indicators weren’t quite up to par to make this list.

However, it might be a good spot for young professionals just starting their careers, given the lower cost of living.

Brentwood is similar to Manchester. Indeed, the biggest difference is Brentwood is closer to downtown St. Louis, situated just west of trendy Maplewood, MO.

Although the Central West End is more of a neighborhood than a suburb, it still deserves a place on the honorable mentions list. It’s located on the opposite side of Forest Park from Clayton.

Glendale has some of the best economic indicators out of any St. Louis suburbs. However, this suburb is on the smaller side. If you want more of a small-town feel away from the metro area, this might be the neighborhood for you.

A Great Suburb For Young Professionals

If proximity to downtown Saint Louis is important to you, then Lafayette Square might be a good fit. This square wraps Lafayette Park and has access to the best nightlife out of any of the areas covered so far.

Not to mention, it’s close to Busch Stadium, the home of the St Louis Cardinals.

Lastly, O’Fallon gets a shout-out for being the best St. Louis suburb in Illinois.

Selling your home and planning for an upcoming move to the Midwest? Check out our list of the top Chicagoland Suburbs to compare neighborhoods and take steps to find your dream house!